Boigu (Talbot Island)
Situated just over 1245 kilometres due north of Thursday Island and around 935 kilometres north-northwest of Cairns in the Torres Strait Island Region's Top Western Islands, six kilometres from the New Guinea mainland, Boigu (Talbot Island; Kala Kawaw Ya: Malu Kiyay or Malu Kiwai) is Australia's northernmost settlement. It is the only inhabited one of the dozen that form the Talbot Islands.
Boigu is low-lying, with an area of just under ninety square kilometres and an approximate length of eighteen kilometres. It was formed by the accumulation of alluvial sediments discharged by nearby New Guinean rivers, which built up an old coral platform in the shallow continental shelf waters. A fringe of mangroves around the coast protects the island's sand and mud from sea erosion. The interior is sparsely vegetated and mainly swampland. Since most of the island is subject to flooding, the township is located on the highest ground at the island's northern end. The airport is located on the village's southwestern edge.
